U-20 Win Milk Cup Opener...

The US U-20 team won their first match in the Northern Ireland based Milk Cup yesterday. The Young Yanks scored three goals and conceded zero in their victory over Wales. Future UVA midfielder, Jonathan Villanueva, opened up his tournament account in the 5th minute. His star is certainly rising with performances like this. Yanks Abroad reported recently that he has been trying out with Ajax of Amsterdam and a solid performance in this competition could seal his move away from the US college system.

Wales made a mistake putting in an own goal in the 10th minute, making any chance of a comeback a tough road to hoe. In the 35th minute, FCD professional Dax McCarty finished off Wales with a third American goal.

The American starting XI included four of the seven professionals and before the match ended, Blake Wagner, Dax McCarty, Carlos Borja, Preston Zimmerman, Rodrigo Lopez and Johann Smith all logged some playing time. The rest of the roster was filled out with current and soon to be college players.

The US faces Denmark tomorrow and a win will assure a place in the final this Friday. A draw will see the US through to the final so long as Turkey doesn't score 3+ goals against Northern Ireland while the US doesn't get any. A loss would most likely put the Americans in the third place match.

It will be interesting to see which of this group decides European club play is a good option at this point in their career. The list of Americans playing football abroad seems to grow every day and young prospects playing well in this event are sure to draw the attention of foreign clubs.